


The Bind

by MyNameIsNotSabine



Series: The Bind [3]
Category: VALORANT (Video Game)
Genre: Amnesia, Brainwashing, Clones, Confessions, Crown Coffee, F/M, Food Fight, Gunplay, Jett Op Meta, Memories, Omen Big Brain Plays, Poison, Probably Iron, Radianite, Rebibe Me Jett, Resurrection, Romance kinda takes a backseat, Set in Ascent, Set in Bind, Snipers, Spike planted, Viper flexing line-ups, What kind of team comps are these, agents on a mission, or Very Low Bronze
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-28
Updated: 2021-03-02
Packaged: 2021-03-12 14:07:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,374
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29760777
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MyNameIsNotSabine/pseuds/MyNameIsNotSabine
Summary: Kingdom is moving to steal radianite from the Valorant Protocol's Moroccan Compound (The Bind).
Relationships: Sage & Sova (VALORANT), Sage/Sova (VALORANT)
Series: The Bind [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2190243
Comments: 16
Kudos: 22





	1. The Mission

**Author's Note:**

> Please heed the archive warnings! 
> 
> There's only bits and pieces of graphic parts, and I suppose a Major Character Death isn't exactly a big deal when /Jett can revive/ but ok, you've been warned. :)
> 
> (yes, i know it's Sage who does the resurrect thing but if at this point you don't know the "Jett Rebayb Me" meme, then that's on you lol)

“I received intel that Kingdom is moving to steal the radianite in our Moroccan Compound,” Brimstone announced, glancing warily at Cypher. “We need a team to investigate and be prepared for any attacks there. Sova, we need to see them coming from a mile away. Killjoy, Sage, make sure they don’t get past the entrances. Raze, Phoenix, be prepared to take down anyone who gets past our sentinels. This mission should be standard, just hold your ground and make sure no one gets near enough to see, smell or touch the radianite.”

The team prepared for the mission. Sova was stringing his bow and filling his quiver. Killjoy has her nose stuck to her laptop, researching data on previous attacks on the Moroccan Compound to reinforce weak points, all while charging her trusty mechanical friends. Sage lined her belt with healing and slowing orbs. Raze was uploading some beats to her music player as she stuffed her pockets with explosives. Phoenix just sat and watched his teammates pack, brushing a non-existent speck of dirt on his already pristine jacket.

“Do your explosives really need to be so…colorful?” Phoenix asked Raze as he picked up one of her grenades. Raze snatched the grenade away from Phoenix. “Yeah, of course! That makes my collateral damage extra collateral! And please, watch your flames, yeah?” Phoenix just shrugged as Raze hit him playfully on the shoulder.

Sova approached Sage cautiously. “I wish you didn’t have to go on this mission too, I hate that you will be so close to danger,” Sova confessed his worries. Sage looked into the hunter’s eyes and smiled. “I am not just your healer. This is what I trained for,” she assured him. Sova sighed deeply. He felt his shoulder slump at the weight of his desire to protect her from anything that may hurt her, no matter how standard this mission may be.

* * *

The agents rode in silence on the way to the compound. Sage can feel the tension emanating from Sova, even if it was unnoticeable to any of the others with them. She squeezed his arm reassuringly and smiled at him. Sova’s lips twitched a little but said nothing. Raze was bobbing her head to the beat of the song on her headphones as Phoenix leaned on her shoulder snoring. Killjoy is still on her laptop for any last minute analysis.

When they reached the compound, Sova began divvying up the assignments. “Killjoy, you will be holding B site with Phoenix. Raze, Sage and I will take care of A,” the hunter directed. “I can hold the area pretty well myself, Phoenix, just cover the angles I can’t,” Killjoy told Phoenix. Phoenix cocked his gun and said, “Relax, settle down, I got this, and I'm not leaving until we're done out here yeah?”

“Sage, if they come too close to A site, just stall them with your wall. Don’t let them get to the teleporters,” Sova directed at Sage. “Raze,” Sova started but he was interrupted by the sound of explosions. “You say something? Ha, sorry, ears still ringing,” she grinned at Sova. Sova just shook his head. Raze is just too much to contain sometimes.

* * *

The agents take their positions. From A Tower, Sova lets his recon dart fly high to scan the area. The dart does not detect anything. They wait patiently, holding their positions. Killjoy’s sentry bot starts shooting at something at the B entrance, which she relays to the team. “I’m going to wall off the teleporter and help them out there,” says Sage, already on her way. Phoenix went to investigate what the sentry detected. Raze jumped over Sage’s wall, in the hopes of flanking the enemies from behind. Sova remained on A site just in case the activity detected on B was a ruse.

Phoenix was faced by three agents from Kingdom, who were uncanny clones of Jett, Yoru and Reyna. He was so thrown off at the sight of seeing what looked exactly like his girlfriend that clone Reyna was able to land two bullets on his arm before he was able to shoot down the clone Yoru. “OH F— they’re clones of us! Watch out! Reyna’s down, but there’s still two on B long who looks exactly like Jett and Yoru!” Phoenix exclaimed at his comms. He started a fire to heal his wounds and clear his head. “That’s not Jett. That’s not Jett. That’s not Jett,” he chanted to himself as he took a deep breath to brace himself. Sage was poised to throw one of her slow orbs through the B entrance to stall their enemies. Killjoy intently waited by the window to watch Sage’s back.

“I caught a clone Viper with my drone near the showers. Don’t let your guard down!” Sova said, looking through the scope of his sniper. Toxic gas started seeping into the site from the entrances. He waited patiently for the clone chemist’s appearance, when he suddenly felt a burning sensation on his legs. The agents heard Sova groan in pain over their comms. “Clone Viper knows her way around here! She got acid on my legs,” Sova said through his teeth, trying to keep the pain out of his voice. Sage started to step back to return to A site. “Sova, stand back. I’m coming to heal you,” Sage said, trying desperately to mask the worry in her voice. Phoenix started towards the B entrance again when they heard three warping sounds of the teleporter. “They’re going A, Sova, fall back and wait for us!” Killjoy hurriedly grabbed her bots to run to A Site as well. Sage reached A tower and found Sova slumped in a corner. _There’s no time to waste,_ she panicked. She pulled out one of her healing orbs to immediately heal Sova, not realizing that they’re in an exposed area. Sova’s eyes widened when he saw clone Jett’s elbow sticking out from the cubby, with an operator pointed at Sage. With all the energy that was left on him, he pushed Sage aside and pointed his Sheriff at Jett’s head. He saw her head explode when his bullet hit her square in the head, but his sight began to fade. He felt liquid trickling down his shoulder. He looked desperately for Sage to make sure she was alright. The last thing he saw before he totally blacked out was Sage’s shocked face.

Sage was sobbing uncontrollably. Blood was gushing down just below Sova’s shoulder from the sniper bullet that was meant for her. She couldn’t understand what Raze was screaming to them in the comms. All she can think about is this man slumped on her lap unconscious. Her ears were ringing with the sound of guns and explosives firing as she desperately tried to staunch the blood flow from Sova’s wound. 

“There’s a loose omen clone here in B,” Raze said over the comms. “He must have faked joining them teleport to A. He just set up a bomb!” Raze managed to sneak behind the unsuspecting Omen clone and took him down. She quickly dismantled the bomb that the clone Omen planted, then raced back to A site to help the others. Killjoy was able to take down the clone Viper hiding near the lamps. Phoenix had to run it back to find the clone Yoru, who he narrowly escaped.

After several moments, things went quiet. Sage heard footsteps running towards her. “Sage, what happened?” Phoenix asked, concerned. “He got shot by Jett,” Sage clipped, focused entirely on tending to Sova. “We need to get him back to HQ. I don’t have enough healing orbs for this much damage.” Phoenix swung Sova’s arm over his shoulders to take him to their vehicle. “I got you bruv,” he whispered solemnly at his friend.

On their way back to headquarters, Raze, Killjoy and Phoenix recounted everything that went down. Sage’s chest was still heaving from the sobs she couldn’t control. She ran her fingers down Sova’s hair, begging the hunter to stay with her. Killjoy put her arm around Sage’s shoulders and assured her that everything will be alright when they reach headquarters.

* * *

When they got back to HQ, they were welcomed by all the other agents, worry evident in their faces. Killjoy has called ahead to inform them how the mission had gone awry. Brimstone called Raze and Killjoy to the conference room to get a rundown of what happened. Phoenix dragged the unconscious Sova towards the infirmary, calling out to Skye. “She’s in shock, I don’t think she’s in any condition to perform any medical procedures right now,” Phoenix told Skye. The nature girl just nodded and helped Phoenix set Sova on the operating table. Sage followed them to the infirmary in a dazed state, tears flowing down her face. Phoenix smiled apologetically at Skye who just nodded reassuringly at him.

Skye pulled out her healing herbs and tried desperately to work on Sova. The hunter has lost so much blood and his pulse was so weak. She knew this was beyond her abilities. “Sage, I can patch a bullet hole or two, but this is out of my league. You gotta get yourself together, alright? Sova needs you.” Sage haphazardly wiped her tears away and stood up, even if she can’t stop herself from sobbing uncontrollably.

The two healers hooked Sova up to the vitals monitors. His heart rate was lower than normal. They knew they had to get the bullet out of his shoulder soon before his would gets too infected. Skye handed Sage her tools, but Sage couldn’t stop her hands from shaking. Even her breathing was ragged with sobbing. “I can’t do this,” she wailed at Skye. “It’s my fault. He took that bullet for me,” she said, panic and desperation unmistakable in her voice. Skye grabbed her by her wrists. “Get yourself together, mate, you can do this.”

Sage proceeded to pull the bullet out of Sova’s shoulder. As soon as the bullet was out, however, a fresh torrent of blood flowed out of the bullet wound which sent the hunter into cardiac arrest. Skye tried her best to stem the flow of blood. "No, no, no!" Sage cried as she charged the defibrillator. The heart monitors flatlined. Sage tried desperately to keep a level head as she placed the paddles onto Sova’s chest. “Sova, stay with me please,” she begged. She tried it three more times, then she felt Skye tug the paddles away. “Sage,” Skye called to her soothingly. “He’s gone.”


	2. Lost

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Valorant Protocol just lost Sova, but an agent loses something more.

“No, no, no, no!” Sage wailed as she touched Sova’s face tenderly. _How can this mission have gone so horribly? We stopped the Kingdom Forces from taking the radianite, but at what cost?_ She can barely see clearly with so much tears flowing down her cheeks. Cypher and Reyna barged into the operating room and were shocked at the sight before them. The empress cautiously approached Sage and put her arms around her shoulders. “You know what to do,” she reminded the healer, referring to the fact that she can just raise him back from the dead. Sage shook her head. “You know how I always fear that those I call back from death don’t always come back the same,” Sage confessed her hesitation. “Viper resented me.” “She did...past tense,” Cypher countered. “We know how much resurrecting takes a toll on you, but for your sake more than ours, you should do it,” Reyna encouraged, looking seriously into the healer’s eyes.

Sage took a deep breath and stood up. She held her hands together and whispered an incantation. A green aura started emanating from her. She hovered her hands over Sova’s lifeless body until the green aura also surrounded the hunter. She waved her hands in a gesture that raised Sova’s body into the air, and covered it briefly with what looked like a crystalized radianite shell. After a few moments, the crystal shell cracked and exploded, revealing a reanimated Sova.

Sage ran up to Sova, and they stared deeply into each other's eyes. Sage could not help herself; she put her arms around his waist and pulled him into a tight hug. "Sova, I'm sorry! I should have cleared the area first! I didn't know she was there and..." Sage was babbling incoherently. Sova gently put his hands on her shoulders and pushed her away slightly to take a good look at her. "I'm sorry, what is this place? Where am I? Who...who are you?"

Sage took a step away from Sova and stared at him in surprise. Cypher approached Sova and put a hand on the hunter's shoulder. "This is the Valorant Protocol Headquarters. You just came from a mission that went wrong and Sage just revived you," he explained. "What's the last thing you remember?" "I...uhm, I was hunting in the tundra, I saw an explosion from afar. There was a very bright light and...here I am," Sova replied, confused. "This is not Russia?"

Cypher and Reyna glanced worriedly at each other. "The mission must've taken a toll on you more than we realize. Let me take you to your quarters so you can rest," Cypher said as he led the way. Reyna faced Sage and took the healer's hand. "He lost a lot of blood, and he died, give him a break. He probably just needs to rest," the empress said, scrambling for words to comfort her friend. Sage continued to stare following Cypher and Sova out of the infirmary. _Something went wrong with the resurrection spell,_ she thought, panicked. _What have I done?_

* * *

“My quarters are two doors down the hall to your left,” Cypher said as he stood by Sova’s door. “Come see me if you need anything.” “Thank you,” Sova said as he stepped into his quarters. Almost everything in it was unfamiliar, but the room seemed comfortable enough. He sat on the bed and stroked the sheets. _Valorant Protocol,_ he thought to himself. _What is the Valorant Protocol? What mission was...oh, I did not even catch his name. How did I get here?_ A thousand questions plagued him. He sat on the bed for a long while, trying his best to remember. After several moments, the hunter fell asleep from wracking his brain for answers.

All of the other agents gathered in the conference room. Sage, Cypher and Reyna recounted what happened when Sage revived Sova, and they concluded that he must be suffering from some temporary memory loss. “It seems that he doesn’t remember anything since First Light,” Reyna said. Brimstone was deep in thought. “Ok, I’m not going to assign Sova to any missions until he gets his memory back. Cypher, since you are practically his best friend around here, be prepared to answer any questions he may have to help him get his memory back soon. Sage…” Brimstone paused. “You know it’s not your fault, right? None of this is. Remember that.” Sage nodded in acknowledgement, but no one was convinced. “Can Sova, uhm…just check his eye?” Killjoy looked around expectantly. Everyone looked at her, confused. “What?! He can just watch what’s recorded.” Cypher smiled. “Little engineer, you are a genius.”

Sova woke up from his nap. He needs help making sense of everything around him. _That gentleman seems nice enough, I should pay him a visit._ He took a deep breath and headed out. Two doors down the hallway, he knocked. Cypher opened the door and let him inside. “How can I help you?” “How about your name first? I didn’t even catch that,” Sova replied. “And tell me about everyone.”

“I’m Cypher. I am the team’s intel specialist, along with you,” Cypher glanced at Sova. “You’ve already seen Reyna, that charming woman. She’s a vampire,” Cypher chuckled. “The other one was Sage, she’s our resident healer, along with Skye. Brimstone is the captain, he gives the orders around here. Be careful around Phoenix and Raze, they love their flames and explosions. Jett’s a little snarky but she’s a nice girl. Don’t forget to wear a mask when you find yourself in Viper’s lab. She loves playing with toxic fumes.” Cypher glanced at Sova from time to time, observing how the hunter is taking everything. “I don’t know what Omen is, honestly, but he’s a nice enough guy, mysterious and keeps to himself most of the time. Breach is the man to go to if you wanna go out for a drink. Yoru is quite a mischief, don’t be put off with his tricks. Killjoy may be a child but she’s a genius. In fact, she suggested that you should check your artificial eye if you can find anything to help you remember.” Sova considered everything Cypher said. “Maybe I should heed the little engineer’s suggestion. I’ll come back if I need any more help. Thank you,” Sova said gratefully as he headed back to his room.

As soon as Sova got back to his quarters, he started fiddling with his artificial eye. A lot of the memories it contained were what he figured to be missions. Though he cannot remember any of it, he began to understand how he came to the protocol, what they did, and how he related to the other agents. One detail that did not escape him, however, was how often the healer named Sage popped up in his eye’s memories. _Could she be someone special to me? Cypher did not mention anything. He would have if there’s something to tell._ He remembered how Sage looked frantic yet relieved when he came to in the infirmary earlier. _This is going to be awkward to ask Cypher._

* * *

Dinner came and everyone gathered in the pantry. Sova was last to come in, having lost his way a bit around the headquarters. The only available seat left was beside Sage. He smiled awkwardly at the healer and took a seat. The awkward silence was heavy in the air. Sova thought hard of a way to break the tension. “Jett…Jett isn’t it? I…so I heeded Killjoy’s advice and reviewed my eye’s memories. You seem to sneak out a lot with Phoenix. Are you…?” Jett turned beet red and dashed in front of Sova. “What else has that eye seen? Give me that!” Jett said as she tried to gouge Sova’s eye out. Sova ducked out just in time but food went flying everywhere and suddenly a full-blown food fight was well on its way. _I wish I can get my memories back,_ Sova thought at everyone lovingly. _This seems a really happy family to be part of._

After dinner, Sova followed Cypher to the latter’s quarters to ask more questions. Cypher happily obliged, seeing Sova become comfortable with him as he was before he lost his memories. Not long, however, he noticed Sova becoming more hesitant with his questions as the questions got more personal. “Cypher, uhm,” Sova struggled to phrase his question. “About Sage…” Cypher smiled mischievously. “She was in a lot of my eye’s recordings. Are we…Is she…” Sova stuttered. “You like her,” Cypher said in a matter-of-fact tone. “I’d even wager you’re in love with her. But as brave as you are in the battlefield, you can’t seem to muster enough courage to tell her how you feel.” Sova considered what Cypher said, but said nothing more.

* * *

The following morning, Sova went to the pantry for some breakfast. Viper was there having coffee and a bagel she bought from Crown Coffee. She offered her extra cup to Sova. “Here. You can have this. Don’t worry, that doesn’t contain acid,” she said with a straight face. She smirked mischievously after a few moments when she realized Sova wasn’t getting her humor. “Thank you,” Sova said, picking up the cup. As he saw the logo on the cup, memories flooded his mind. He was in a conversation over coffee and snacks, reminiscing his childhood and his past. He wracked his brains to remember who he was having the conversation with. _Sage,_ he remembered. _It was her._

Sova left the pantry and decided to catch some air. He headed to the penthouse and to the rooftop, leaning towards the railing and taking in the city. He contemplated on everything Cypher told him about the Valorant Protocol. He considered the recordings the found in his eye. He thought about the girl named Sage, and why he can’t seem to get her off his mind. He was so deep in thought that he did not notice Omen at first. Omen paid him no mind and just sat in a corner with a book. Sova stared shamelessly at Omen, wondering what Omen was. Another flash of memories came to him. Omen dancing. Sage laughing. _This doesn’t make sense. And she’s in my memories again,_ Sova sighed. He stomped down from the rooftop, frustrated, leaving Omen in peace.


	3. Taken

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is hugely based on some of @lilyqii's Sova x Sage art series. I even got some of the dialog there for this chapter. 💙💚 (If it's not obvious already, she's one of the biggest reasons i got back to writing. She introduced me to a ship I never knew I needed in my life. ♥️)

Days went by. Sova was slowly regaining some of his memories, but nothing significant. He decided that if his memories will ever come back, they will eventually. He decided to just take the days as they come.

A new mission has come up. Brimstone gathered everyone to the conference room and called for a meeting. “I received reports that Kingdom is planning to hit our Venice compound next,” he announced. “Jett, Raze, Omen, Sage, you’re up with me.” Brimstone laid out assignments and contingencies. He dismissed the agents to prepare for the mission. As they were leaving the conference room, Sova grabbed Sage by the arm. He was surprised at himself. He scrambled for something to say. “Good luck on the mission, and take care,” he said, scratching the back of his head. Sage just nodded and hurried away.

After the team of five left for the Venice mission, Sova decided to take a hike to hone his hunting skills. _I need to show captain that I’m ready to be sent on missions again,_ he thought, determined. He told Cypher that he’ll be back by the time the team gets back from the Venice mission. Cypher wished him well.

* * *

The Venice mission team returned earlier than expected. Skye waited eagerly by the hangar to help the team get settled back. To her surprise, Jett came out of their jet covered in blood, cuts and bruises. Skye hurried to help her injured comrade. “What the hell happened, mate?” she asked the wind girl frantically as she called the other agents to help out. Cypher and Phoenix came running to assist a weak and injured Brimstone, as Omen and Raze limped after Skye and Jett to the infirmary. As soon as they were settled in the hospital beds, Jett recounted what happened. “We didn’t expect so many of them. Sage and I, we were watching A site. I heard a cannon blast, i thought it was just Raze messing around. It was too late when I realized and I wasn’t able to dodge it,” Jett cried. “The others were on B site and could come soon enough because they were trying to hold their ground against a horde of Kingdom soldiers. I came to just in time to defuse a bomb the soldiers planted near me. I saw them tie up Sage and take her with them. We gotta get her back!” Jett almost jumped off the bed. Skye held her down and tried to restrain her. “You won’t be of much use to her in this state,” the nature girl said. “You guys need to heal up quick so we can get her back.”

Sova just came back from his hunting trip. He passed by the med bay on his way back to his quarters when he heard a commotion. He went in to check what’s happening and he was surprised to see the Venice team all beat up and injured. “Captain, what happened? Where’s Sage?” Everyone glanced at one another, not wanting to be the one to tell Sova. Finally, Jett spoke up. “They took her, Sova. We were outnumbered. They tied her up and took her with them, I’m sorry,” she cried. “We’ll get her back okay?” Skye assured him. “Let me just heal everyone up. I just can’t do it as well as Sage does,” she worried. Sova just stared at them, dazed. _They have Sage. I can’t let them hurt her,_ he thought in panic.

Sova left the infirmary without a word. He went straight to the armory to load himself up. He restrung his bow, filled his quiver with enough darts and arrows to take down an army. He stroked his owl drone tenderly before tucking it under his arm. He picked up an operator and looked through the scope. He shoved a sheriff into the holster on his belt and loaded his pockets with bullets. He adjusted his fur cape around his shoulders before he headed for the hangar.

* * *

“You forgot to turn off the jet again, Captain,” Yoru said over the intercom, already on his way to the hangar when he heard the jet engines roaring. “I turned it off!” Brimstone exclaimed. “Then who…” Yoru’s eyes widened as he saw the jet flying out. “Has anybody seen Sova?” Cypher asked over the intercom. Brimstone’s brows furrowed. “He took the fucking jet! Somebody get Sova’s ass back here!” he screamed angrily. “Captain, we only have one jet,” Yoru replied, defeated. “I can probably open a rift and follow him but if he’s going where I think he’s heading, it’s beyond my range.” “You mean he’s going to Venice to get Sage back?” Cypher exclaimed. “Looks like it,” Yoru concluded.

Sova landed the jet a little ways away from the Venice compound. He shot a recon dart to scout the area. His recon reveal three soldiers patrolling by the market. He took his position and pulled out his sniper. _Come on, stick out an elbow for me,_ he thought to himself. Soon enough, and armed guard peeked with more than enough of his body visible to Sova. The hunter easily took him out by a bullet to the chest. A few more moments of his patience was rewarded by five more soldiers passing his crosshair and not living long enough to get through it. He took out his owl drone and sent it ahead of him. To his surprise, the drone found Sage sitting by Wine, smiling. Sage called the owl drone to herself and petted it.

Sova followed the path the owl drone took and cautiously approached Sage. His eyes widened at the sight of her. She was dressed much less conservatively than she did at headquarters. She was also smiling at him very seductively. His brows furrowed. “What’s wrong, Sova? Aren’t you happy to see me? Am I not what you came here for?” Sage purred. “What has Kingdom done to you?” Sova snapped. “No, you’re not the real Sage. You must be a clone,” he argued. “You may have lost your memories, but I know how keen your sight is. If you indeed thought I was a clone, you would have shot me the moment you peeked the corner,” Sage said smugly. “They brainwashed you,” Sova realized. “They brainwashed you because Kingdom knows we won’t hurt you,” his shoulders slumped as the truth hit him. “Why don’t you join me, Sova? Kingdom has been treating me quite well, as you can see,” Sage twisted and twirled to show Sova her curves. “I won’t let Kingdom have you!” Sova exclaimed. He tried to take a step towards Sage to take her away but his feet felt heavy. He looked down to see that he was trapped in her slow orb. _No! Level head until we’re home, Sova. There must be a way to take her away from this place._

Sage took a step towards him and touched his face tenderly. She took his bow from his hand, dropped it to the floor and stepped on it to break it. She put her arms around his waist and stood on her toes as he reached her face closer to his. _Concentrate, Sova,_ he desperately thought to himself. An idea suddenly came to him. He pulled out one of his Shock Darts from his quiver and stabbed sage in the arm with it. Sage groaned in pain and fell unconscious in his arms.

As soon as the slow orb melted, he picked Sage up in his arms. In his peripheral vision, he saw an agent with a sniper trained at them. Memories came rushing back to him. _My legs are burning. Sage came to heal me. A clone Jett is poised to snipe her. I pushed Sage aside and shot the clone Jett in the head. There’s a searing pain in my chest._ Sova’s eyes widened as he suddenly remembered where they are. He barely dodged the sniper bullet that left a hole in his fur cape. He shook his head to clear his thoughts and ran back to the jet. He hugged Sage to his chest protectively. _Hang in there Sage, we’re going home,_ he chanted to himself. He laid her gently in one of the seats in the jet and took off immediately, before the shooting Kingdom soldiers get close enough to do any real damage.

* * *

Sova gently landed the jet in the hangar. All the agents were standing on the platform. All of them looked worried, except for Brimstone who has his arms crossed over his chest and his brows furrowed. He gently picked up Sage in his arms again and got off the jet. Brimstone wordlessly motioned to Skye to take Sage to the infirmary. Sova reluctantly handed Sage over to Skye, not wanting to be away from her. Brimstone towered in front of Sova with his face just inches away from the hunter’s. “WHAT THE FUCK WERE YOU THINKING, SOLDIER? YOU LEAVE WITHOUT WARNING AND WITH NO BACKUP! IF YOU FAILED OUT THERE AND DIED, THAT’S TWO OF YOU WE LOSE TO KINGDOM!” Breach tried to hold Brimstone back from his tirade with no luck. Everyone feared that Brimstone was so angry, he would punch Sova for his recklessness. “I’m sorry, captain, I…I know I acted carelessly. I just…I can’t bear the thought of Sage…” Sova hung his head down in defeat. There’s no fight left in him as he knew he deserved all the reprimanding Brimstone is going to give him. Surprisingly, Brimstone softened at sight of Sova’s remorse. “Just…don’t pull that kind of shit ever again, understand? I’ve already lost all of my loved ones to First Light, there’s no way I’m giving up any of you.” He said, looked around at each of the agents around him, and headed back to his quarters.

Sova rushed to med bay to ask Skye how Sage is doing. “She’s still unconscious, but your dart didn’t do any irreparable damage. We’ll just have to wait until she wakes up,” the Aussie said. “You should take a rest as well. I suppose taking a whole army by yourself isn’t exactly a walk in the park.” Sova shook his head. “Do you mind if I stay here? I’ll watch her.” “I’d rather you get some rest, but I can see you won’t be deterred. She’s not going anywhere, try to get some rest while you’re here. Help yourself to any of the beds.” Skye said as she left the med bay.

Cypher dropped by med bay to check on Sova and Sage. “Are you ok?” He asked the hunter. “I got my memories back,” Sova replied, which surprised Cypher. “Welcome back, brother.” They sat in silence beside the unconscious Sage. “I’m sorry I got all of you worried,” Sova started, breaking the quiet after a few moments. “I just can’t stand the thought of Kingdom having their filthy hands on her.” “Ah, no need to explain, my friend, I did not expect any less from you. However, I would have preferred it if you took me with you,” Cypher smiled. “We love her too, you know, maybe not as much as you do, but still.” Sova smiled appreciatively. After several moments, Cypher stood up, gave Sova a pat on the shoulder, and left med bay.

* * *

Two days have passed. Sage is still unconscious though her vitals have gone back to normal. Sova stayed by her bedside the whole time, only leaving for bathroom breaks and quick meals. He sat diligently by her bed, occasionally rubbing her hand between his, or tucking loose strands of her hair away from her face. He felt tired after a while so he leaned his head on the edge of the bed, by Sage’s leg. He drifted to a nap not long after.

Sage started to come to. She slowly opened her eyes to get them accustomed to the bright light overhead. _Where am I?_ She looked around. _No Kingdom soldiers. Please, let this be home,_ she thought to herself. She felt something warm on her hand. As she looked down, she saw Sova’s hand on top hers while the hunter slept peacefully. She tried to sit up without jostling the bed and put her other hand on top of Sova’s. “Sova,” she said tentatively. The hunter slowly opened his eyes and upon seeing Sage awake, he sat up hurriedly. “Sage! You’re awake,” Sova exclaimed as he brought her hand to his face to caress it on his cheek. Sage is surprised at the show of affection. “Sova, what are you doing here? Where are we?” “We’re home. You’re here in our med bay, Skye is just getting something to eat but she’s scheduled to check up on you in about an hour,” Sova said. “Please tell me what happened,” Sage asked curiously. “All I can remember is the sound of an explosive and being hit in the head.”

Sova held Sage’s hand in two of his, and fiddled with her fingers. “According to Jett, Kingdom soldiers outnumbered you. Jett took on a cannon blast, and the last thing she saw before blacking out were men tying you up and taking you after they planted a bomb. Brim, Omen and Raze couldn’t come to your rescue as they were also being pummeled on the other site,” Sova recounted solemnly. “They were lucky to escape Venice alive. They planned to come back for you but the four of them sustained serious injuries. When I came back from my hunting trip and heard what happened, I knew the longer Kingdom has you, the smaller our chances are of getting you back. I’m not having any of that,” Sova said as he looked down. “How did you get me back? The place i was held captive in must have been extremely fortified,” Sage wondered. The hunter didn’t look up. Instead, he continued turning Sage’s hand over his and placed it on his cheek. “Sova,” the healer prompted, sensing his hesitation.

“I took the jet and went back to Venice myself,” Sova said quietly. Sage was about to retort vehemently when Sova touched her lip with his thumb.“I was expecting the compound to be heavily guarded, but there were only six soldiers patrolling. Easily dealt with. And then I found you,” he recounted. “Is there something you’re not telling me? That seems too…easy,” Sage doubted. “Yes, that was the easy part. The hard part was convincing you to come with me.” Sage cocked her head to the side in confusion. Sova continued. “I found you. You were dolled up and pretty flirtatious,” he chuckled. “Kingdom brainwashed you. You were trying to convince me to join Kingdom with you. It was very difficult to keep my resolve,” Sova flushed. “I…uhm, I had to use one of my shock darts to subdue you. I’m sorry about that,” he looked at her apologetically. “Then I saw a sniper aimed at us, all my memories came back flooding in. It was almost like the Moroccan mission, that must have triggered it,” Sova thought aloud. “I came to my senses just in time for us to dodge the sniper bullet. It left a hole in my cape, see.” he pulled his cape to show the bullet-sized hole. “It’s too bad, this is my favorite cape.”

Sage tenderly placed her hands on either side of Sova’s face and lifted it to face her. “You risked your life for me yet again,” Sage said solemnly. “You have to stop doing that. Look at what happened the last time I tried to revive you. You lost your memories,” she admonished. The hunter took the healer’s hands from his face and held them delicately in his own. “I can lose my life over and over again. Even if I lose my memories, I know I will always find my way back to you,” Sova said. “But if I lose you, you are lost forever. That is something I cannot live with,” Sova confessed.“Sova!” Sage exclaimed as she looked deeply into the the hunter’s eyes. A rush of blood warmed her cheeks. Her heart is full with Sova’s confession.

“I love you, Sage. I will never ever regret losing my life for you,” Sova said solemnly. Sage smiled as tears flowed down her face at Sova’s confession. “I love you too, Sova. Please try not to die so much, okay? I don’t think my heart can take so much of that,” she chuckled. Sova was so overwhelmed with happiness from Sage’s words that he grabbed her face and kissed her fiercely.

After several moments, they pulled away to catch their breaths. “Brimstone could’ve punched you senseless and you’d still think it’s totally worth it,” Breach laughed loudly as he shoved the ward curtains aside to reveal all of the other agents. Sova scratched the back of head sheepishly as Cypher and Reyna approached the two. Cypher clapped Sova on the shoulder and Reyna gave Sage a big sisterly hug. Viper was poised to open a bottle of champagne when Skye started herding them out of the infirmary. “Hey, hey, hey, no drinking in the med bay!” She snatched the bottle from the chemist’s hands. The two women engaged in a stare-down before finally bursting out laughing and joining the others to give Sage and Sova a big group hug.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the last chapter for this post/series. :) I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. xoxo

**Author's Note:**

> Ok, please forgive the iron-esque gameplay depiction, I just barely scraped a Bronze 1 rank. Also, I have no idea how defibrillators really work apart from what I see in medical movies/tv shows so please let that go too. Hahaha :)
> 
> Edit: Work Complete!


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